Doing things differently: Funding ACCOs to keep families together

July 2026

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Overview

Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children thrive when they are safe, connected to family, community and culture, and supported by services that understand their strengths, identities and aspirations. Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander community-controlled organisations (ACCOs) have consistently demonstrated they are best placed to provide this support. Yet current funding systems continue to fall short of recognising the strengths, expertise and operating realities of community-controlled service delivery.

Doing things differently: Funding ACCOs to keep families together presents the findings and recommendations of research into funding model options for ACCOs delivering child and family support services. It draws on a review of academic and grey literature, extensive engagement with ACCOs across Australia and detailed financial modelling. The report identifies core principles to guide the design of a funding model that is responsive to the sector and aligned with commitments under the National Agreement on Closing the Gap. It also assesses a range of funding options, identifies a recommended model and sets out implementation considerations to support progressive reform.

A strong and growing evidence base shows that prevention and early intervention services are critical to improving child and family wellbeing and reducing the over-representation of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children in the child protection system. The literature reinforces the distinct needs of children and families: holistic, integrated and trusted care that is trauma-informed, culturally grounded and deeply connected to identity, family, community and Country. While research gaps remain, the evidence is clear that ACCOs are best placed to deliver these community-led and culturally safe services. Their holistic model of care, strong community connections and cultural authority enable more responsive, relevant and effective support for children and families.

Despite this, current funding arrangements do not reflect the realities or strengths of ACCO-led service delivery. The funding environment is characterised by administrative complexity, inadequate resourcing and rigid program rules that limit responsiveness. Existing models fail to recognise the true costs of delivering holistic, culturally safe and community-controlled services, constraining ACCOs’ ability to invest in their workforce, strengthen organisational capability and deliver the flexible, early support that keeps children safely connected to family, community and culture.

Consultation with ACCOs identified five core themes that underpin both current funding challenges and a future fit-for-purpose model:

• Community leadership and self-determination – Self-determination is fundamental to reform. Funding models must be co-designed in partnership with ACCOs and governments, and actively enable self-determination in service design and delivery. This includes recognising cultural expertise through appropriate cultural loading.
• Administrative simplicity and flexibility – ACCOs require consolidated, long-term and outcomes-focused funding that reduces administrative burden and enables flexible, community-responsive service delivery. Funding should not be constrained by short-term cycles or overly prescriptive reporting requirements.
• Organisational sustainability and sector growth – Current arrangements do not reflect the full cost of delivering services or sustaining strong organisations. Funding must support core operational costs, governance, strategic planning, capital infrastructure and long-term sector development.
• Holistic and responsive service design – ACCO-led services are inherently holistic and community connected. Funding models must support integrated, place-based approaches that reflect local needs, address remoteness and enable early, tailored and cross-sector support, including investment in evaluation capability.
• Strong and supported workforce – Workforce pressures are acute and disproportionately impact ACCOs. Funding models must enable long-term contracts, workforce development, pathways for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander staff, recognition of cultural load, safe workplaces and pay parity with government and non-Indigenous services.

Building on these findings, the report outlines six funding principles to guide reform. It assesses a range of funding model options before recommending a hybrid model for ACCOs delivering child and family support services. The model combines stable block funding with needs-based funding that reflects community size, location and complexity, providing certainty while maintaining responsiveness to local context. It also proposes a staged transition towards more coordinated and pooled funding arrangements that reduce administrative burden and support genuine partnership between governments and the community-controlled sector. The report concludes with seven recommendations to support implementation across governments. Together, these provide a practical pathway for embedding self-determination in funding reform, strengthening ACCO sector sustainability and growth, and improving investment in culturally safe, community-led early supports that evidence shows lead to better outcomes for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children and families.